10 years later/10 cycles in the present.

Ben an twilight fell to there knees. Both openly crying. Max looked away his own tears swelling up. Celestia hung her head low. She stepped up to them. "Thats how you both know each other. In the weeks after twilight spent hours endlessly searching for a way back to you ben. I was afraid of losing another student."

Twilight shoved her face into bens shoulder. He in returned held her close. Ben used a hoof to whipe away his tears as he looked into the princesses eyes. "But how. Why did I forget!."

"Because both of you treasured your time together. The spell took everything an reached over the dimensions to make sure. But while twilight came out unharmed. I do not know how the spell might have effected you. Im ashamed to say back then I didn't care." Max stomped forward getting between them and celestia.

"Ill tell you what happened! He was depressed an in grief! He thought he killed her! Then he couldn't remember who she was but he still felt every bit of Sorrow!" Ben gasped. "I knew something was up! Gwen could sense the magic. But we couldn't do anything." His own voice faltered as ben looked at him.

"You knew Grampa? All this time! W-why! You should have told me!" Ben voice turned to rage. He felt betrayed as he held the mare.
The girls then entered the room having been spying on them. They quickly ran to twilight. Applejack quick took bens place as he looked max in the eye

"I couldn't Ben. I knew if the magic was strong enough to breach dimensions that any attempts to reverse it could be dangerous. I made your cousin promise never to tell you."
Bens tears flew again. Even after all this time his grandpa was still keeping things from him.

He turned away. Moving back to twi an placed his hoof on her gently. Max tried to reach out to ben but he slapped away his hoof. "No just go. Please I can't...we can't be around you two right now. Please. I love you grandpa but this..." He couldn't bring himself to keep talking. But Max got the message. Celestia looked at her student. She knew ben was right. She turned away. The two older ponies left the mares an ben alone.

A part of ben wanted to lash out. He wanted to turn into waybig and throw celestia out of orbit for what she did to him. To twilight. Right now however that wouldn't help anyone. The ponies were quiet for some time. After awhile crys dried up. She was dehydrated from the tears. Rairty used her magic to levitate a glass of water to her.

"Well hun I rekon we should stay here with you an ben for abit. Yall seem like you shouldn't be alone." Applejack said while still holding twilight in her embrace. Twilight slowly nodded while ben didn't react at all. He had been quiet for awhile.

Pinkie ended up pulling out a pile of sleeping bags and other stuff for a sleepover. Where she got it was anyones guess. Before long the girls got twilight comfortable. He kept his distance at first. The girls needed to help their freind first. He could deal with his emotions later he thought. He turned to walk away when he felt a sharp push.

"Ah heck no! Your staying with us alien boy!" Rainbow dash practically tackled him back into the room. Luckily neither of them were harmed. As they landed back with the girls pinkie somehow managed to wrap him in a blanket turning him into a pony burrito.

He was absolutely stunned was the girls set him with twilight who was also in her own burrito. "Your our friend too ben! We wouldn't let you be alone right now!" Pinkie spoke up. Ben found himself blushing brightly. Twilight started to smile as she looked at him. After all these years here he was. One of the oldest freinds shes ever had. An her first crush.

The night went on as twilight explained how ben an her met. The time they spent together an how ben looked after her. "Oh ben you were such a gentlecolt! How very kind of you darling!" Ben blushes only grew as the girls made varying comments about him. It really didn't seem like all that much he was just doing what he thought was right."

"You both seemed very close. Im happy you two were safe back then." Fluttershy told them this with a genuine sweetness that hit them both hard. Like an affectionate bullet. Rainbow also got surprisingly excited hearing about the camping trip. The mood was surprising chearfull. Untill twilight mentioned kai.

"She called him a what!" All the girls yelled loud enough to shake spike down stairs. Each one of them looked ready to hunt her down. Even the shy an adorable fluttershy had murder in her eyes.

"How could that meaninie say something like that to our benny!" Pinkie screamed at her while she pulled the ben burrito into a crushing hug. The girls all seem to agree. Even twilight who was the one recounting the events looked like she wanted to fight her. Ben was just blushing even redder from being called their benny. At this point he was gonna look like big mac.

Twilight continued retailing them with event's. She didn't hide any details. Even when she crawled onto ben. But when twilight brought up bens an animos fight his ears drooped." -Ben retaliated against this Animo guy when he attacked me. His device didn't effect me likely because of my magic. But Ben was brutal. Ive never seen him so angry. I'll admit I was kinda scared."

Ben looked down ashamed of himself. Even if it been 10 years he felt guilty. Sure Animo was an evil bastard not doubts about that. But he wasn't nearly evil enough to be put down. Twilight saw bens face as she spoke stopping a second to crawl out of her blanket cocoon.

She walked right up to him leaning in and placing a peck on his cheek. The girls all collectively gasp. Twilight the socially akward adorkable mare just gave ben a kiss. Ben immediately perked up seemingly forgetting what he was thinking about.

"Ah twilight I think you broke him sugercube." Applejack waved her hoof in front of him to no reaction. But soon enough best face curled into a smile. Twilight giggled before returning to her blanket.

"I just wanted to give him a long overdue thank you for saving my life a long time ago. Also this next part gonna be rough to hear." She continues the story. Leaving no detail out of the fight with ghost freak. All though ben had to chime in to give his perspective of events. By the end all the girls really wished they slapped the princess.

"Ben max said the spell did affect you. How exactly?" Twilight asked. She didn’t even hesitate. It would be hard to hear but she needed to know. Bens smile disappeared once again turning into a frown.

"Even though I couldn't remember I was angry at myself. I didn't know why but I felt like I failed at being a hero. I tryed to act like nothing was wrong I even ended up spending as much time as an alien as I could. I ended up overusing one I called feedback." Ben eyes started to water.

"When I was feedback It was amazing. He would numb the pain an anger. It was.. addicting. But then I lost him to. It felt the same as when I lost you twilight. Like losing a piece of my heart. Only in this case it was literally a villain tearing part of my being away. In the end I couldn't do it anymore. Losing you then losing feedback was to much for me an I took off the watch. I stopped being a hero for 5 years."

The girls all approached him before hugging him tightly. Twilight specific nussled into his chin gently as to not poke him with her horn. He hugged the girls back feeling abit easier. His heart starting to beat faster the longer they held on.

"You'll never lose me again ben. Or any of us." He believed it. These six mares were his world now. Each one a reminder for why he fought. He smiled an closed his eyes. He ended up falling asleep in the embrace of the mares. Twilight giggled. Ben didn't know it yet but these girls were determined to stay with him.

"Psst twilight I have to pee." Pinkie said as she was stuck in the hug pile. Twilight groaned as the girls gently let go an laid him to rest.

Each one of them smiling at their favorite colt.

Author's Note

Sorry I know we all wanna fight sun butt but I just dont think ben would. This is him fully grown hes matured.